Self-monitoring card



May 6, 1969 M, BRYAN, JR" ET AL 3,441,984 SELF-MONITORING CARD Filed July 28, 1966 INVE NTORS MORRIS M. BRYAN, JR.

MORRIS W. ROBERTS ATTORNEYS United States Patent US. Cl. 19.23 2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A carding machine for treating textile fibers wherein the web of fibers is fed through a trumpet to form a sliver, the sliver is monitored to determine its density, and the operation of the carding machine is terminated when the average density of the sliver is not within a predetermined density range for a set length of the sliver.

In the carding of textile fibers, it is a requirement that the resulting card sliver be substantially uniform through- 'out its length. This is because any lack of uniformity in the card sliver throughout its length causes a corresponding lack of uniformity in yarn produced from the card sliver if the lack of uniformity is not subsequently corrected. This requirement has been diflicult to meet with prior art cards because variations in the operation of the card or in the feeding of fiber to the card are diflicult to identify and correct.

7 It is because of the difficulty in meeting this requirement with prior art cards that a plurality of card slivers are customarily combined in a subsequent drawing operation to provide a single drawing frame sliver having improved uniformity because of the drawing and combining of the plurality of card slivers used in the drawings operation. However, this effort to correct the lack of uniformity in card slivers produced by prior art cards has not been entirely satisfactory because of the lack of information concerning the uniformity of the card slivers combined during the drawing operation and because one or more card slivers which lack uniformity to a substantial degree cause a drawing frame sliver to lack uniformity throughout its length in spite of the drawing operation. Moreover, attempts in the prior art to provide information concerning the uniformity of card slivers by the sampling of card slivers have generally been time consuming and wasteful and have frequently not provided accurate information.

The invention disclosed herein overcomes these and other difiiculties encountered in the prior art in the carding of textile fibers in that it provides a card sliver having a weight per unit of length which varies only within a predetermined range of weights throughout its total length and having variations in weight per unit of length within this range which are sufliciently small for the card sliver to be substantially uniform and which are readily ascertained for use in the subsequent blending of the card sliver with other card slivers to provide a drawing frame sliver that has even greater uniformity throughout its length. Moreover, where the textile fiber being carded is a synthetic or other fiber which is improved in its characteristics by radiation, the invention provides, as an incident to carding, a card sliver for subsequent processing into a textile fabric having radiation improved characteristics.

These improvements in the carding of textile fibers are provided by a card having a monitoring means for monitoring the weights of unit lengths of a card sliver as the card sliver is produced by the card, a cut-01f means responsive to the monitoring means for rendering the card inoperative when the weights of a plurality of successive unit lengths of the card sliver do not fall within a predetermined range of weights, and an accumulating means responsive to the monitoring means for accumulating the weights of the unit lengths of the card sliver. The monitoring means includes a radiation element and a radiation responsive element positioned on opposite sides of the card sliver to provide a voltage output to the cut-off means and to the accumulating means porportional to the weight of the card sliver passing between the radiation element and the radiation responsive element as determined by the portion of a beta ray beam absorbed by the card sliver.

It is this monitoring means with the cutoff means which provides a card which produces a substantially uniform card sliver. In addition, when the energy level of the beta ray beam is maintained within the appropriate range, the monitoring means serves not only to provide a voltage output representative of the weights of unit lengths of a card sliver but also as a means for improving those characteristics of fibers which are responsive to radiation by improvement.

These and other features and advantages of the invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings in which like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout and in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a plurality of cards having the monitoring means of an embodiment of the invention disclosed herein:

FIG. 2 is a schematic circuit diagram showing an embodiment of the invention disclosed herein.

These figures and the following detailed description disclose a specific embodiment of the invention but the invention is not limited to the details disclosed since it may be embodied in other equivalent forms.

The invention disclosed herein may be most easily understood in terms of a conventional card 10 having a main cylinder 11 to which a lap 12 is fed and from which a web 13 passes to a trumpet 14. A card sliver 15 passes from the trumpet 14 to a coiler 16 which serves to coil the card sliver 15 within a can 18 for subsequent processing. It is because a card embodying the invention disclosed herein is generally conventional in construction and mode of operation that the card 10 is only generally shown and that its other conventional components are not described.

However, unlike conventional cards, a card 10 embodying the invention disclosed herein also includes a radiation element 20 and a radiation responsive element 21 which to gether serve to provide a monitoring means for monitoring the weights of unit lengths of the card sliver 15. In that embodiment of the invention disclosed herein, the radiation element 20 and the radiation responsive element 21 are positioned on a platform 22 across which the card sliver 15 moves between the trumpet 14 and guide rollers 23 as the card sliver 15 passes from the card 10 to the coiler 16. Moreover, in that embodiment of the invention disclosed herein, the radiation element 20 is arranged in a conventional manner to provide a beta ray beam through the card sliver 15 and toward the radiation responsive element 21 from a nuclide such as carbon 14, promethium 147, or calcium 45.

The radiation responsive element 21 is a beta scintillation detector and includes a phosphor plate 24 positioned for one side to be impinged upon by that portion of the beta ray beam passing through the card sliver 15. In addition, the radiation responsive element 21 includes a photoelectric cell 25 positioned on the opposite side of the phosphor plate 24 from that side of the phosphor plate 24 upon which the beta ray beam impinges.

Those skilled in the art will understand that the phosphor plate 24 is rendered luminous by the impinging of :he beta ray beam upon it and that the degree of lumirousity of the beta ray beam impinging upon the phosphor plate 24. With the positioning of the radiation elenent 20 and the radiation responsive element 20 on op posite sides of the card sliver 15, the intensity of the beta ray beam impinging upon the phosphor plate 24 is inversely proportional to the weight of the increment of length of the card sliver passing between the radiation element and the radiation responsive element 21 at any given moment. This is because the density of the card sliver 15 determines the portion of the beta ray beam which is absorbed by the card sliver 15 so that it does not impinge upon the phosphor plate 24 and because the density of the card sliver 15 is proportional to its weight.

The photoelectric cell 25 is conventional in that it provides a voltage output which is proportional to the luminousity of the phosphor plate 24. Therefore, since the luminousity of the phosphor plate 24 is proportional to the weight of the card sliver 15 passing between the radiation element 20 and the radiation responsive element 21, the voltage output of the photoelectric cell 25 is proportional to the weight of that increment of length of the card sliver 15 between the radiation element 20 and the radiation responsive element 21 at any given moment.

It has been found that energy levels of the radiation element 20 may be as low as one milliroentgen per hour and still provide a beta ray beam which provides a voltage output from the radiation responsive element 21 which is inversely proportional to the weight of the card sliver 15. However, it has also been found that energy levels of the radiation element 20 may be substantially higher and that at some energy levels, the beta ray beam not only serves to provide a voltage output from the radiation responsive element 21 which is inversely proportional to the weight of the card sliver 15 but also serves as a means for inducing desirable changes in the characteristics of fibers forming the sliver 15. For example, if the card sliver 15 is formed of certain synthetic fibers and the radiation level properly selected, the monitoring means provided by the radiation element 20 and the radiation responsive element 21 serves to provide a substantially uniform card sliver 15 for subsequent processing into a textile fabric which is grease releasing. The radiation element 20 and the radiation responsive element 21 are not described in greater detail since they are conventional and will be understood by those skilled in the art once the invention disclosed herein is understood.

That embodiment of the invention disclosed herein also includes a conventional integrating network to which the voltage output of the radiation responsive element 21 is continuously fed and which serves to accumulate and integrate the voltage output of the radiation responsive element 21 over a predetermined interval of time as to provide an integrated voltage output having an amplitude inversely proportional to the weight of that unit length of card sliver 15 which passed between the radiation element 20 and the radiation responsive element 21 during the predetermined interval of time. This integrated voltage output from the integrating network 30 is fed at the end of each interval of time to a conventional computer 31 as an analogue input and the computer is programmed in conventional manner to convert each analogue input to a decimal equivalent and to accumulate the decimal equivalents of a plurality of succesesive inputs.

The computer 31 is also programmed in conventional manner to compare each of the plurality of decimal equivalents to a decimal standard and to classify each decimal equivalent in accordance with its deviation from the decimal standard. When a predetermined number of successive deviations are not within a predetermined range of deviations, the computer 31 provides a cutoff pulse to a relay 32 operatively in the main control circuit 33 of the card 10.

The relay 32 is conventional and in response to the cutoff pulse from the computer 31, the relay 32 opens the main control circuit 33 of the card 10 so as to render the card 10 inoperative. It will be understood that since each deviation of a decimal equivalent from the decimal standard is representative of the amount by which the weight of a unit length of the card sliver 15 varies from that weight of a unit length of card sliver 15 which corresponds to the decimal standard, the card 10 is rendered inoperative when the weights of a predetermined num ber of successive unit lengths of card sliver 15 are not Within that predetermined range of Weights or densities card sliver 15 corresponding to the predetermined range of deviations. It will also be understood that the rendering of the card 10 inoperative when the weights of successive unit lengths of card sliver 15 are not within a range of weights insures that the card sliver 15 produced by the card 10 is always substantially uniform throughout its length and also insures that substantial variations in the operation of the card 10 or in the feeding of cotton to the card 10 are promptly identified for corrective action.

The computer 31 also provides an output to a printer 34 showing the decimal equivalents of the unit lengths of card sliver 15 grouped in terms of their deviations from the decimal standard. Thus, the printer 34 provides a summary of the uniformity of a card sliver 15, within a. range of weights, relative to that weight of a unit length of card sliver 15 which corresponds to the decimal standard. When a plurality of successive unit lengths of card sliver 15 are related to a particular can 18 such as by a manual input from a switch 35 to the computer 31 when cans 18 are changed and the computer 31 provides a corresponding output to the printer 34, the printer 34 provides an indication of the uniformity of the card sliver 15 in each can 18 and with appropriate computations using the weight of a unit length of card sliver 15 which corresponds to the decimal standard, the printer 34 provides a visual indication of the total weight of the card sliver 15 in each can 18. The indication of the uniformity of the card sliver 15 in each can 18 permits the card sliver 15 in each can 18 to be appropriately blended in a drawing operation with the card slivers 15 in other cans 18 to provide a drawing frame sliver of even greater uniformity.

It will now be understood that the integrating network 30, the computer 31, and the relay 32 serve as a cut-off means for rendering the card 10 inoperative when a plurality of successive unit lengths of card sliver 15 are not within a predetermined range of weights. Similarly, it will be understood that the integrating network 30, the computer 31, the printer 34, and the switch 35 serve as an accumulating means for accumulating the plurality of voltage outputs from the radiation responsive element 22 and for providing an indication of the uniformity of the total length of card sliver 15 in a can 18.

It will also be understood that not only are the integrating network 30, computer 31, and the printer 34 conventional but they are merely representative of a variety of devices suitable to a cut-off means and an accumulating means which will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art once the invention is understood. They have been used to disclose an embodiment of the invention because they do not reqiure a detailed description for understanding of the invention and because of the flexibility provided by a conventional computer.

Moreover, the integrating network 30, the computer 31, and the printer 34 have also been used to disclose an embodiment of the invention because they are particularly well adapted to serve with a plurality of relays 32 and 32 and a plurality of switches 35 and 35' in a cut-off means and accumulating means for a plurality of cards 10 and 10. This is shown in FIG. 2 where it will be seen that the integrating network 30 serves to integrate the voltage outputs from a plurality of radiation responsive elements 21 and 21 each operatively associated with a card 10 or 10'. In this embodiment of the invention, the

integrating network 30 provides a separate analogue input to the computer 31 for each card or 10 and the computer ,31 in turn provides a sepaarte cut-otf pulse to the appropriate relay 32 or 32. In addition, the computer 31 provides an output to the printer 34 "for each card 10 and 10' and with appropriate inputs from a switch 35 and 35'- associated with each card 10 and 10', the printer 34 provides an indication of the uniformity and total weight of the card sliver from each card 10 and 10' in each can 18.

It will now be understood that regardless of the particular devices used to provide an embodiment of the invention, the invention is a self-monitoring card 10 having a monitoring means to provide a voltage output representative of the weight of the card sliver 15 being produced by the card 10, a cutofi means responsive to the voltage, output for rendering the card 10 inoperative when the weights of a predetermined number of -successive unit lengths'of card sliver 15 are not within a predetermined range of weights, and an accumulating means responsive to this voltage output for accumulating means responsive to this voltage output for accumulating the voltage over an interval of time to provide a representation of the uniformity of the plurality of unit lengths in'card sliver 15. It is a card 10 having this combination of a monitoring means, 'a cutoif means, and an accumulating means with its other conventional components which provides a selfmonitoring card which avoids the difficulties encountered with prior art cards. This is because a card 10 embodying the invention is rendered inoperative beforevar'iations in the operation of the card 10 or in the feeding of fiber to the card 10 result in the card 10 producing card sliver 15 which is not substantially uniform throughout its length. Moreover, the card 10 provides that information with respect to the card sliver 15 produced which permits the card sliver 15 to be blended with other card slivers 15 in the most efiicient manner. In addition, the card 10 provides a card sliver 15 for subsequent processing into a textile fabric which has desirable radiation induced characteristics which can not be obtained in any manner with prior art cards.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that many variations may be made in the embodiments chosen for the purpose of illustrating the present invention wiLhout departing from the scope thereof as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed as invention is:

1. A carding machine for treating textile fibers wherein a web of fibers is fed through a trumpet member to form a sliver, the combination therewith of monitoring means including a radiation element and a radiation responsive element responsive to the density of said sliver passing therebetween for providing an output proportional to the density of a length of the sliver, the output being a voltage output inversely proportional to the density of said sliver between said radiation element and radiation responsive element, means for accumulating and integrating said voltage output over each of a plurality of intervals of time corresponding to predetermined unit lengths of said sliver to provide a plurality of integrated voltage outputs and means for receiving and comparing the plurality of integrated voltage outputs of said accumulating and integrating means to a predetermined standard for rendering said carding machine inoperative when a predetermined number of the plurality of integrated voltage outputs are not within said predetermined standard.

2. The carding machine of claim 1 in which said radition element emits a beta ray beam.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,942,303 6/1960 Bossen et a1. 19240 2,981,986 5/1961 Neil 19-240 2,989,796 6/1961 Ashe 19.25 XR 3,268,953 8/1966 Burnham 19.25 3,305,688 2/1967 Lamparter 19--239 XR 3,109,204 11/1963 Linnert et a1. 19241 FOREIGN PATENTS 866,491 4/1961 Great Britain.

DORSEY NEWTON, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 19-239 

